Last week, I went to the eye doctor for my annual exam. I have been seeing an eye doctor since I started wearing glasses in elementary school.
A long time ago.
Yet, when the optician had me go through all the exercises, I was struck by how extensive the exam was. I spent close to two hours getting my eyes checked.
While there was the familiar eye chart, there were also several other exercises that looked for things like cataracts, glaucoma, and who-knows-what-else. It seemed like I looked through countless lenses. Each lens made changed my vision slightly.
Fortunately, I don’t have to be an optometrist to get my vision corrected. I can rely on people who are much more skilled in that area than I am.
At the end of the exam, the optometrist told me that my prescription was the same as my last exam. My vision hadn’t changed.
Those words had me take notice. My vision hadn’t changed in a year.
That’s true in the way the optometrist meant it. My current glasses are doing their job of helping me see across the room and up close.
My vision has changed in other ways, though.
A year ago, I was still blind when it came to my finances. Even though I had been on a long healing journey that had brought me to a much better place emotionally, I was just beginning to fix my financial vision.
It had been years since I had last kept a budget or even checked my account balances regularly. A year ago, it simply wasn’t something I was ready to take a close look at – even with a master’s degree in accounting and a career in corporate accounting.
What I didn’t know couldn’t hurt me, I figured.
Fortunately, during the time I was intentionally avoiding my finances, nothing seriously detrimental happened. It helps to have a partner who was catching the slack. After many years of her catching the slack, though, it was beginning to take its toll on both her and me.
I was ready to see and improve my financial picture. It started slowly. Logging into my account and checking the balance.
From there, I began checking my balances daily. Then I started to maintain my budget weekly. Soon something I had been dreading was something I looked forward to.
More recently, I’ve begun hosting the weekly Happy Money Club and leading the Your Path to Freedom and Prosperity program. Now prosperity is spreading into others’ lives. It’s never felt so good to see prosperity so clearly.
Shine brightly!
Stef (xe/xem)
Golden Nuggets
Golden Word: optic from Greek optikos “of or having to do with sight.” Example: They improved the optics of their finances, and their prosperity soared.
Golden Quote: You cannot depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus. – Mark Twain
Golden Speech: The Hidden Code For Transforming Dreams Into Reality Life coach and personal development expert, Mary Morrissey, challenges us to clarify our vision from vague to crystal clear.
Golden Statistic: 32.2 million American Adults age 18 and older experience vision loss. (National Health Interview Survey)
Golden Term: Mental accounting refers to how a person values money differently based on personal bias, rather than objective reasoning (Investopedia)
Golden Tip: Check your financial vision regularly.
Golden Question: When did you last update your financial vision?
Golden Resource: 5 Step Emotional Check-in. Calm your emotions, so you can see prosperity clearly. (Download as PDF)
